Verreynne stars but series unlikely to proceed

South Africa 277/8 Netherlands 11/0 (2 overs)

THE fate of the One-Day series between South Africa and the Netherlands will be determined over the weekend, after a drama-packed day yesterday, in which the action on the field played second fiddle to the talks taking place off it.

The opening ODI was abandoned yesterday afternoon, due to rain, which had started falling in Centurion shortly after the Dutch had started their pursuit of South Africa's healthy target of 278.

In a statement made through Cricket SA, the Koninklijke Nederlandse

Cricket Bond said it would continue to monitor the situation, following the announcement Thursday that a new, reportedly more potent strain of the Covid-19 virus had been identified and was taking hold in Gauteng.

The Netherland’s SA embassy tweeted that a travel ban had been implemented for flights departing South Africa. The KNCB confirmed that it was “highly unlikely that the team will be able to fly out of South Africa over the weekend.”

“A decision on the continuation of the series will follow in the next 24 to 48 hours, while all flight options are being considered,” the CSA statement read.

On the field, before the rain, Pieter Seelaar’s team had equipped themselves impressively.

They had created pressure at the start of the home team’s innings after Seelaar had inserted them in upon winning the toss, by dismissing both openers, Reeza Hendricks (6) and Janneman Malan (16) by the seventh over thanks to left-arm seamer Fred Klaassen.

It took a partnership of 119 runs for the third wicket between debutant Zubayr Hamza and Kyle Verreynne, playing just his ninth ODI, to initially steady the ship, and then regain the initiative for the Proteas.

Verreynne, who said this week, he wanted to use the opportunity in the series to make a claim for a spot in the 2023 World Cup squad, was busy early on, nudging singles and driving clinically down the ground when the Dutch pitched the ball up.

Hamza got his innings going with a deliciously flicked six off St. Stithians graduate, Brandon Glover, and then proceeded to drive elegantly for much of his innings. The running between the wickets was another standout feature of the pair’s partnership.

Hamza fell for 56 (5x4, 1x6), miscuing a pull of Glover in the 29th over, which was the start of a period in which the Dutch asserted control of the game.

Seelaar made good use of his spinners to pin down David Miller, while Khaya Zondo, making his return to the international scene for the first time in three years, was bowled by Roelof van der Merwe.

Verreynne’s inexperience showed in that period as he struggled to balance the importance of keeping the scoreboard ticking while also growing understandably tense as he closed in on a maiden international century.

He fell five runs short, flummoxed by a slower ball from Vivian Kingma, which he sent straight to Bas de Leede at deep backward square leg. Verreynne took 112 balls to make his 95, which included nine fours and a six

South Africa was in danger of getting bowled out, but stand-in skipper Keshav Maharaj and Andile Phehlukwayo shared an invaluable partnership of 68 runs for the eighth wicket off only 38 balls.

Phehlukwayo, who needs a big series to re-establish himself at international level, smashed six sixes and a four in a 22-ball innings that saw him make 48. Maharaj was not out on 18, as South Africa scored 64 runs in the last five overs.